Antonio Joseph Marion White, 36, was sentenced to 35 months in prison Monday after a confrontation at Riverside Park near Oregon City in which prosecutors said he threw rocks toward geese and swimmers before displaying a knife. White was convicted of unlawful use of a weapon, menacing and second-degree disorderly conduct, according to KPTV.
The sentence resolves the criminal case arising from the May 16 incident, but the available reporting does not establish that White was charged with violating a wildlife-protection law. KPTV reported that a dispute began after people at the park objected to rocks being thrown near geese and swimmers. The confrontation escalated when White allegedly obtained a knife and threatened people; one swimmer displayed a handgun, and White later left the park before deputies arrested him at another river park.
The goose dispute sits within a broader management issue
Urban goose conflicts are a recognized management problem, although that broader issue does not explain or justify the conduct alleged in this case. A Pacific Flyway Council management plan hosted by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife says expanding urban Canada goose flocks have created nuisance problems requiring specific management actions. The plan provides regional wildlife-management context; it does not document a pattern of criminal confrontations at Riverside Park.
Posted rules address conduct in public parks
Clackamas County's posted rules say riotous, abusive or threatening behavior will not be tolerated, according to Clackamas County Parks. Oregon City's separately posted park rules prohibit firearms and fireworks in city parks, according to the city's Parks and Recreation department. The available material does not establish which jurisdiction's rules governed every aspect of the encounter or whether the swimmer's display of a handgun was legally justified.
The central legal finding in White's case concerned the alleged knife threat and the resulting confrontation with other park users. The reported sentence and convictions do not by themselves show that goose-related disputes or weapons incidents are increasing in Oregon parks. Riverside Park sits along the Clackamas River, and the case illustrates how a dispute over wildlife and shared recreational space can become a criminal matter when threats or weapons enter the encounter.
